What Paul Mills is looking for from Wichita State basketball team in Sunday exhibition
Ahead of his coaching debut at Koch Arena, Paul Mills is demanding a simple approach to the game from the Wichita State men’s basketball team.
The Shockers are set to play in their lone exhibition game at 1 p.m. Sunday against Rogers State, a Division II program from Arkansas.
“I told our team that we need to be the best in the world at doing simple,” Mills said on Friday. “Let’s just dominate the simple. Some of that sounds easy, like being able to close out, getting to the right (close-out) hand, having the right foot angle, but those are the things that we’re working on every single day.”
Wichita State received its first barometer test last weekend in a closed scrimmage against Iowa, an NCAA tournament team from last season that is expected to be in contention to return to March Madness this season.
A final score was never publicized, although sources told The Eagle that WSU was “encouraged” by a short-handed performance in what ultimately was an Iowa victory.
According to sources, WSU was without point guard Bijan Cortes (academics), forward Ronnie DeGray III (two-time transfer), wing Harlond Beverly (undisclosed injury) and freshman Yanis Bamba (foot injury) with forward Dalen Ridgnal also limited.
Mills said WSU is still in “waiting mode” on Cortes and DeGray, who are still awaiting decisions from the NCAA on their waivers to play this season.
Due to WSU policy, Mills wasn’t able to talk specifically about injuries ahead of Sunday’s exhibition. But he did say health has dictated what lineups he has been able to use in recent practices. For the players who have been healthy, the Iowa scrimmage was an eye-opening experience in many ways.
“As a parent, it’s like when you say something to your kid and then somebody else comes along and tells them the very same thing you’ve been telling them for 10 years and your kid will be like, ‘Oh, so and so told me this’ and all of a sudden they listen,” Mills said. “I think that’s what scrimmages do, especially when you’re playing that caliber of team. It helped us be able to reinforce things that have been mentioned all along, but now those things carry a new weight.”
Things like pick-and-roll defense, transition offense and half-court execution will be things the WSU coaching staff will monitor on Sunday. Mills said he has challenged players to execute those details at an 80% rate, which is tracked by coaches through film every day in practice.
“I want to see where we are in regards to execution of things that we’ve worked on,” Mills said. “Is there a translation from the practice court to what will be a different environment? I want to see can we get this stuff right.
“And then we’re going to make adjustments and changes in the middle of it. Did they know a change was made and did they get that right? Some of it is going to be how well we operate on the fly.”
Rogers State features several “bucket-getters” at guard, according to Mills, and the team plays a hyper-aggressive defensive coverage for pick-and-rolls, which should give WSU a different look ahead of the regular season.
Outside of veterans Kenny Pohto and Colby Rogers, Mills said he isn’t sure yet who will be included in the starting lineup for Sunday’s exhibition. He added it won’t carry much weight because “that will likely change November 6.”
He also said the team has yet to make any final decisions on redshirts, although both true freshmen, Bamba and Joy Ighovodja, are candidates.
Wichita State vs. Rogers State exhibition game
When: 1 p.m. Sunday
Where: Koch Arena (10,502), Wichita
TV: None
Radio: KEYN, 103.7-FM with Mike Kennedy and Dave Dahl
